Compared to last year, demand is lower
Em Criciúma, uma cidade que já contabiliza sete mortes por doenças respiratórias, o sistema de saúde mobilizou todos os seus 47 postos em um único sábado para enfrentar uma hesitação que crescia silenciosamente entre os mais vulneráveis. Mais de 12 mil doses foram aplicadas — um feito operacional — mas os números anteriores à campanha revelavam uma lacuna mais profunda: crianças e idosos, os que mais precisam de proteção, eram também os que menos buscavam a vacina. O esforço de um dia pode ter ampliado a cobertura, mas o que vem a seguir depende de decisões estaduais sobre estoque e da disposição das pessoas em retornar quando as portas se abrirem novamente.
- Sete mortes por doenças respiratórias e uma cobertura vacinal de apenas 54% entre grupos prioritários criaram um senso de urgência real para as autoridades de saúde de Criciúma.
- Crianças e idosos — os mais suscetíveis a complicações graves — apresentavam os menores índices de vacinação, revelando uma hesitação concentrada exatamente onde o risco é maior.
- A prefeitura respondeu abrindo todos os 47 postos, reforçando equipes e criando estações extras para absorver a demanda em um único dia coordenado.
- O resultado superou as expectativas com mais de 12 mil doses aplicadas, mas a partir de segunda-feira o acesso será restrito aos grupos prioritários devido ao estoque limitado.
- O horizonte permanece incerto: novas remessas dependem do estado, e a verdadeira medida do sucesso será saber se os mais vulneráveis voltarão quando houver vacina disponível.
No sábado, 30 de maio, Criciúma mobilizou todos os seus 47 postos de atenção básica em uma força-tarefa de vacinação contra a gripe. O contexto era preocupante: sete mortes por doenças respiratórias no município e apenas 54% dos grupos prioritários imunizados antes da campanha. Crianças lideravam o déficit, com pouco mais de 51% de cobertura, seguidas pelos idosos, com 54%.
A campanha foi aberta a toda a população. Equipes foram reforçadas, salas extras foram abertas e o fluxo foi acelerado. Ao fim do dia, mais de 12 mil doses haviam sido aplicadas — acima do esperado. Mas a enfermeira coordenadora Evelyn Brognoli observou o que os números também diziam: a demanda estava menor do que no ano anterior, e a hesitação era mais intensa justamente entre quem mais precisava se proteger.
A partir de segunda-feira, 1º de junho, os postos passarão a atender apenas os grupos previstos no calendário — idosos, gestantes e crianças de seis meses a seis anos. O estoque municipal é finito, e o estado ainda não confirmou novas remessas. O secretário de saúde Deivid Freitas reconheceu o êxito operacional do sábado, mas a questão central permanece aberta: a campanha foi suficiente para mover a cobertura entre os mais vulneráveis? A resposta dependerá do abastecimento estadual — e de se as pessoas de Criciúma voltarão quando as portas se abrirem novamente.
On Saturday, May 30th, Criciúma's health system opened all 47 basic care units and administered more than 12,000 flu vaccine doses in a single coordinated push. The city had reason to move fast. Respiratory illnesses were climbing, and the numbers before the campaign told a troubling story: only 54 percent of people in priority groups had been vaccinated. Children lagged worst of all, at just over 51 percent. The elderly, another vulnerable population, sat at 54 percent. Seven people had already died from respiratory disease in the municipality.
The Saturday mobilization was open to everyone, and people came. The health department reinforced staffing at every unit, opened extra vaccination stations, and worked to move people through quickly. Evelyn Brognoli, the nurse coordinating the immunization sector, had been watching the hesitation build. "Compared to last year, demand is lower," she said. The reluctance was real, and it was concentrated among the groups most likely to face serious complications if they caught the flu.
The campaign succeeded in its immediate goal—12,000 doses in one day exceeded what officials had expected. But the underlying problem remained. Brognoli and her team knew that Monday would bring a hard pivot. The state had not promised new vaccine shipments. The municipal supply was finite. Starting June 1st, the health units would restrict shots to the groups the calendar required: elderly people, pregnant women, and children between six months and six years old. Everyone else would be turned away.
The decision reflected a familiar constraint in public health: the gap between what you want to do and what your supply allows. The secretary of health, Deivid Freitas, framed the Saturday effort as a success—the expanded capacity, the extra rooms, the coordinated push across the city. He was right that it worked operationally. Whether it moved the needle enough on coverage remained to be seen. The city had made a statement on Saturday. Now it would wait to see if the state sent more doses, and if it did, whether people would come back.
For now, the vulnerable groups—children and the elderly—remained the focus. They were the ones most likely to die if respiratory illness took hold. They were also the ones least likely, so far, to accept the vaccine. The campaign had tried to bridge that gap in one day. What came next depended on supply, on state decisions, and on whether the people of Criciúma would return when the doors opened again.
Citações Notáveis
Vaccine hesitancy is occurring. Compared to last year, demand is lower.— Evelyn Brognoli, immunization sector coordinator
We reinforced all units, expanding the number of vaccination rooms to facilitate and speed up the process.— Deivid Freitas, Criciúma health secretary
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did the city feel it needed to do this all in one day? Why not just keep the vaccination sites open normally?
Because the numbers were alarming. Seven people had already died. The coverage rates—especially for children and elderly—were dangerously low. A single coordinated push sends a signal: this matters, come now. It also lets you concentrate resources and staff in a way that regular operations don't allow.
But if the vaccine supply was already limited, wouldn't a single day just burn through it faster?
Yes, exactly. That's the tension. They needed to reach people urgently, but they also knew the supply wouldn't last. Saturday was the window—open to everyone, maximum effort. After that, they'd have to ration.
The nurse mentioned vaccine hesitancy. What does that actually mean in a place like Criciúma?
It means people aren't coming, even when the vaccine is available and free. Compared to the year before, fewer people showed up. That's not a supply problem—that's a trust or belief problem. And it's hitting the most vulnerable hardest.
So the campaign worked in one sense but failed in another?
It worked tactically—they got 12,000 doses into arms in one day. But it didn't solve the underlying hesitation. Come Monday, when access tightens, those skeptical people won't have another chance unless the state sends more vaccine.
What happens if the state doesn't send more?
Then the campaign becomes a one-day event that briefly raised coverage but didn't sustain it. The vulnerable groups stay vulnerable. The respiratory illnesses keep circulating. The deaths continue.